


Screaming

by BunniesofDoom



Series: Tumblr Requests [141]
Category: No Fandom
Genre: Dreams and Nightmares, Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-03
Updated: 2019-07-03
Packaged: 2020-06-03 03:26:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19455358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BunniesofDoom/pseuds/BunniesofDoom
Summary: Cassidy wakes up to the sound of screaming.





	Screaming

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a prompt on my sneezehq/bunnysocs for my OCs Marie and her younger sister, Cassidy. If you want to read more about them I have written about them at my bunnysocs tumblr. Enjoy!

Cassidy wakes up to the sound of screaming. Sitting bolt upright, her heart pounding in her chest, she’s afraid that someone broke into the apartment again. But suddenly she recognizes the source of the screams-Marie.

She throws off the covers and crosses her room, flinging open the door. Marie wouldn’t scream if a burglar was here; the last person that tried to rob them had been forced to face off against Marie with a paring knife. Hopefully they’d doctored his cuts before throwing him in jail. 

Nightmares, on the other hand …

Padding quickly down the hall, Cassidy does her best to open the door to her sister’s room as quietly as possible. The age of the building makes it difficult, but she manages to make only a slight creaking noise as she opens it and tiptoes in.

On the bed, Marie is thrashing around, still shrieking, and somehow still sound asleep. The covers around her are a mess and she’s shoved both of her pillows off onto the floor.

Cassidy stands at the foot of the bed, chewing her lip and deliberating on what to do. Listening to her sister scream is heartbreaking, but sometimes Marie reacts badly when she’s woken up from a really horrible nightmare.

Another anguished scream tugs at her heart and stiffens her resolve; she can’t just sit here and keep listening to these awful screams.

She moves closer to her sister and tentatively reaches out to shake her shoulder. Gently, of course. “Marie, wake up,” she says calmly but firmly. When that doesn’t work, she tries again. 

“Marie, it’s just a dream. Marie!” Her sister still won’t wake up, her face creased with pain, and Cassidy is starting to panic a little.

Marie suddenly lets out a shuddering breath and sits upright in bed, grabbing Cassidy’s wrists and shaking her slightly. Her eyes are open, but slightly unfocused, and her grip is so tight that it’s starting to hurt.

Still, Cassidy tries to push aside her fear and calm her sister. “It’s ok, I’m here, Marie. You’re safe, I promise.”

Some of the tension seems to seep out of Marie, and her hands loosen slightly. Cassidy keeps going. “Dad’s not here. He’s dead. He can’t hurt you anymore. You’re safe here with me, in our apartment.”

Marie’s breath shudders out on a sigh, and her eyes finally focus on Cassidy’s face. “Cas?” she croaks. Her voice sounds gravely and raw. She notices that she’s still holding onto Cassidy’s wrists and releases them, reaching up instead to scrub at her face and erase the tear tracks left there. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Cassidy insists, shooting her sister a reassuring smile. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Marie responds instantly.

You don’t have to be strong all the time, Cassidy wants to say. But she knows that Marie doesn’t want to hear that, and wouldn’t believe it if she said it. So she settles for offering to make tea instead.

“I’m okay,” Marie insists. Then, frowning, “You should go back to bed. You still have to go to school tomorrow.”

“I will,” Cassidy says, pouting at the reminder. “Sleep well,” she calls over her shoulder as she heads back to her room.

She hears the bedside lamp being switched on as she closes the door behind her. Marie isn’t sleeping any more tonight.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please comment and leave kudos!


End file.
